


Liberty's Cuter Than I Thought It'd Be

by brazenlyunabashedlyshamelessly



Category: Captain America (Movies)
Genre: Christmas Fluff, Domestic Fluff, I just wanted to write something, M/M, i don't even know what this is
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-01
Updated: 2019-01-01
Packaged: 2019-10-02 06:42:44
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,969
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17259461
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brazenlyunabashedlyshamelessly/pseuds/brazenlyunabashedlyshamelessly
Summary: Based on the AU prompt: Imagine your OTP getting a dog.





	Liberty's Cuter Than I Thought It'd Be

James Buchanan ‘Bucky’ Barnes had spent the better part of seventy years as one of the deadliest assassins alive. To see him was to look into the face--the mask?--of death. In the years before his stint as a Hydra assassin, he had served in the United States army, punching Nazi’s in the face. More recently, he’d joined the Avengers, participating in world saving at least twice.

Point being, Bucky Barnes is a badass.

Only, someone had apparently failed to inform the little ball of slobber cradled in his arms.

“Hold still,” Bucky orders, unable to disguise the exasperation in his voice. He’s only just put the puppy back in the box, just until the intended recipient arrives, but the creature’s happy flailing is going to ruin any semblance of surprise. “C’mon, he’s gonna be here any minute.”

The box’s lid is still open, and a pair of wide, chocolate brown eyes stare adoringly up at Bucky. She’s parked her butt on the floor, but her tail continues to wag energetically, banging into the side of the box with rhythmic thumps.

Bucky hadn’t planned on getting them a dog. In fact, Bucky would argue that he had been conned by a very convincing sales lady and her manipulative little mutt.

He’d been on his way to buy groceries. It was cold out which made Steve eat like a horse, and they were running low on pretzels, so the plan was to restock before Steve set this sights on the furniture.

No big deal.

On his way to the store, Bucky had approached an older woman, whose car had been double parked at the curb, the trunk open wide. She’d been wearing a brightly coloured headband, and long flowing clothes despite the cold weather.

But the seventies throwback style hadn’t been what had caught his attention.

Instead, it was the dopey little face peering out of the trunk.

Bucky had forgotten all about the pretzels.

The puppy’s entire body was brown, except for its front paws and its chest, which were white. It’s little noise was black, and twitched excitedly at Bucky’s approach. It had let out a little yip when Bucky stopped an arm’s length away.

“Oh, look, she likes you,” the woman had said cheerily. Her words were confirmed by the puppy’s frantic tail wagging and attempts to escape the trunk and the box she’d been placed in. The woman gently nudged the puppy back inside before she could get out.

He didn’t reply, instead reaching out with his right hand to tickle the puppy under the chin. Her chocolate brown eyes closed in pleasure, and her tail wagging intensified.

“What’d you bring her out here for?” Bucky had asked. If he was feeling the cold, it was way too cold for a puppy. His fingers were wet with drool by that time. It was pretty gross, but he couldn’t tear himself away.

“Well, we need to find her a new home,” the woman had said regretfully. “Cassie, our boxer, had relations with--” She’d paused a moment, nose wrinkled in disdain. “--a stout little bulldog. I’m afraid we have nowhere to keep her.”

The puppy whined, almost as though she understood the woman’s words.

Bucky’s heart broke a little.

_What? No, get a hold of yourself!_

Pulling his hand away, Bucky tried very hard not to look at that crestfallen little face.

“Well, good luck with that,” he’d said, beginning to back away.

“Yes, thank you, dear,” the woman had muttered. “I’m just worried that we might not be able to find the right fit for her. You know how some folks are. They see a puppy and want it, but when it comes to long term care...” She’d sighed, shaking her head.

_Don’t do it, Barnes, don’t you do it._

“Who knows, she might even end up on the street. All alone.” Bucky could see the woman watching him from out of the corner of her eye, clearly waiting for a reaction.  

_Damn it._

“How much d’you want for her?” Bucky had asked, resigned.

The words were barely out of his mouth when she’d started reaching for the box.

“Not a thing,” she’d replied, pressing the box into his hands. “Just promise me you’ll take care of her.”  
  
“Uh yeah, sure. I guess.”

Nonplussed, Bucky stared down at the puppy, who’d been gazing up at him with utter trust.

“One last thing,” the woman had said. She shut the trunk and stepped up to the right rear door. After a brief moment of rummaging, she’d emerged with a bright pink ball and a threadbare blanket. “Here you go. It’s been nice talking to you.”

Holding the ball and blanket in one hand, the puppy in the other, Bucky had watched as the woman drove off. She hadn’t spared them a backward glance.

Fast forward an hour later, and Bucky is sitting on the floor with an excitable little dog, waiting for Steve to come home and tell him what to do.

He’d been together enough to feed her, at least. Scrounging up some skinless chicken, Bucky had heated it up while the puppy had watched him from her position on the floor.

That little tail hasn’t stopped wagging since she arrived.

A few more minutes pass before Bucky hears keys turning at the front door. Nerves and excitement propel him to his feet. Bucky wipes his sweaty palms against his jeans.

“Hey, Buck, I’m home--”

Steve stops short, staring at Bucky.

“What did you do?” he asks. The familiar red, white and blue is shield is still on his back, and he’s wearing a leather jacket over one of those distractingly tight t-shirts that Bucky loves. He’s too worried about Steve’s reaction to fully appreciate the sight.

“You know how you love surprises?”

“We both know that’s not true,” Steve says cautiously. He’s taking the shield off, appearing more curious than worried, when something behind Bucky catches his attention.

“Is that--?”

Bucky looks over his shoulder, just as the puppy leans up against the edge of the box, sending it toppling over. She gives a startled little yelp.

“Surprise?”

For a moment, Steve’s expression is completely unreadable. The smile that then spreads across his face is bright and warm and delighted, and all Bucky can do is stare.

Pausing only long enough to give Bucky a quick, hard kiss, Steve drops into a crouch before the puppy. She doesn’t hesitate, disproportionately big feet pattering on the hardwood floor as she walks towards him. She immediately licks Steve’s outstretched fingers.

“Where did you find her?” Steve asks, not taking his eyes off the dog. Bucky thinks he looks like that heart eyed emoji.

“On my way to the store,” Bucky says. He’s watching Steve and the puppy get to know each other, but he has no doubt that they’ll get along just fine. By now, the puppy’s rolled over onto her back, feet up in the air as Steve rubs her belly.

_Sucker._

“Oh, my God.” Steve’s hand stills, and he looks back at Bucky with wide eyes. “We have so much shopping to do. We.. we need to get her a bed, and, uh, food…”

Steve is rattling off a list of items they needed to buy, but Bucky isn’t really paying too much attention. He’s just staring at his best friend, and the disgruntled puppy and a feeling of contentment he doesn’t think he’s ever experienced before settles over him.

_I really love this guy._

“Buck, are you even listening to me?”

“Yeah, Stevie, I hear ya.”

Walking over to where Steve is crouched, Bucky presses a kiss to Steve’s temple before reaching over to scratch behind the puppy’s ears.

“While I’m out, I’m gonna need you to come up with a name for her.”

A few minutes later, Bucky’s on his way to the grocery store. He grins the whole way there.

_Let’s try this again._

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Steve doesn’t like surprises. He thinks that’s fair, since he’s had more than enough of them in his life.

But for the first time he can remember, this is a happy surprise.

“How ‘bout Lucy?” he asks as he moves around the apartment. He’s got the puppy securely cradled in one arm as he goes about loading the laundry into the dryer. Pausing to check her expression, Steve shakes his head. “Nah, doesn’t fit. Pancakes? Peaches?”

Might just be easier to call her The Dog.

“I’m back!” Bucky calls out some time later, arms laden with bags. By that time, Steve and the puppy have settled in front of the tv. She’s fast asleep, sides rising and falling rhythmically.   
  
“Finally. We missed you,” Steve says with a smile. He shifts, careful not to jostle the puppy too much, and sets her on the couch where he’d been sitting. A contented little sigh escapes her as she snuggles deeper into the warmth.

“She’s sleeping in our bed, it’s not up for discussion,” Steve announces when they’re in the kitchen. Bucky gives him an amused look.

“Someone’s whipped, and it hasn’t even been a day.”  
  
“Says the guy who got suckered into taking her home in the first place.”

Bucky grimaces at the reminder, but quickly shrugs it off.

“You’ve gotta see what we got her.” With all the excitement of a child on Christmas morning, Bucky starts to unpack. He’d bought an enormous bed, large enough to comfortably seat a grown mastiff. There were about four different brands of puppy food, as well as half a dozen bowls, followed by enough chew toys to last the puppy her whole life.

“You got all this… in an hour?” Steve watches as Bucky adds yet another toy to the already huge pile.

“This is nothin’,” Bucky says, waving a hand dismissively. “Check this out.” With a slight pause for dramatic effect, Bucky pulls out… a miniature water fountain.

_Oh, my God._

Steve presses his lips together to stop himself from laughing. A small snort must escape before he can stop it because Bucky glares at him.

“D’you wanna tell me what _you_ did while I was out?”

He’s sure he must radiate smugness at this point; only his ears stop his grin from going around his head.

“I got a name.”

“Well?” Bucky says after a moment.

Steve braces himself for the teasing he knows he’s going to get.

“Liberty.”

Bucky doesn’t disappoint. He sniggers.

“Too cheesy?” Steve asks, grinning as Bucky tries to fight back what sounds suspiciously like giggles.

“It’s the cheesiest thing I’ve ever heard,” Bucky says, smiling wide. “It’s perfect.” He pulls Steve close, and presses a soft, chaste kiss to his lips. Once, twice, a third time. Steve lets out a soft sigh, happy to stay where he is forever.

“Merry Christmas, Steve.”

Steve’s a hair's breadth away from leaning in for another kiss when a soft thud interrupts them. He and Bucky only have a moment to share a surprise look when they hear the patter of little paws. Liberty must’ve jumped off the couch, but she doesn’t seem too perturbed by her landing.

Prancing over to them, she stands up on her hind legs against Bucky. She stares up at him beseechingly, letting out a little whimper.

“Oh, boy,” Bucky says, shaking his head. Hands gentle, he lifts Liberty up into his arms to cradle her against his chest. She stretches up to lick his face.

While Bucky half-heartedly tries to fend off puppy kisses, Steve has a sudden epiphany.

_This is my family._

“You okay over there, Stevie?” Bucky asks, watching him. “You’re lookin’ a little misty eyed.”

“I’m great. Really great.” Reaching for Bucky’s other hand, Steve gives it a tug. “C’mon, Buck, lets go to bed.”  
\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It comes as no surprise to Bucky that first night when he’s assigned potty duty.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, this is probably rubbish, but I haven't written anything halfway coherent in years, so I'm excited.


End file.
